January 31, 2011

that's SO last year

January 31, 2011/ molly balint

First of all, thank you, for all the comments and encouragement and commiseration and "I'm in the midst of it too" on my last post. I seriously still intend to sit down and reply to many of your comments. It has just been hard to find a chunk of time on the computer, or I should rephrase that-- a chunk of "productive" time on the computer. But seriously. Thank you.

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Every year just before the holidays, I tell myself that this is going to be the year that I get my act together and mail out a Christmas card. And every year, I'm determined to not go the route of pre-designed, purchased photocards. I vow that I'll design my own unique, creative version.

That vow hasn't gotten me very far. It has been more than SIX YEARS I'm guessing since I sent out a Christmas card. And even then, it might have been a baby announcement, not a true holiday greeting.

But this year, I came to my senses and ordered our Christmas card from tinyprints. Hello? Why had I not been doing this earlier?

But....I was still determined to add our own "flair" to the whole thing so at the very last minute I whipped up a little "best of 2010" to throw in with the card.

I have to say, I kind of love it. It was so fun making every one come up with their list. Emma had hers finished in five minutes. Dan and I agonized over ours.

And let me just say, apparently, I don't watch a lot of movies. Coming up with a best movie title for 2010 was painful. I know I saw some good movies. I'm sure I did. But in the end, 3:10 to Yuma was the best I could come up with. I remember it having a really good story line. And Russell Crowe. That makes a good movie, right?

Anyway, I've been meaning to share our card with all of you. Since I couldn't possibly afford the postage for a card for each of you. :)

Next year, we plan to add another category for the girls. But I think I'll keep that one under my hat until the end of 2011.

December 20, 2010

hello again

December 20, 2010/ molly balint

Wow. I'm still here. Really, I am. Tis the season to be hunkered down and happy. Which leads to a lot of absence in this place. I'm sure that will change come the new year. At least I truly hope that it will.

And because the lists are working for me, here you go:

*My mom showed up at my house a week ago for a whirlwind of decorating, gift-giving and also the handing down of several things that she's been storing from the old farmhouse we grew up in....sheep show boxes and fitting stands, bee hives, galvanized tubs, rubber feed pans, and an old writing desk. She also showed up with a bag containing this little silver tray, a prize from my "reign" as queen of the county fair. It's funny, but if left to my own 17 year-old opinions, I'm sure I would have thrown this out years ago. But I'm so glad it got squirreled away in my old bedroom closet. She brought it to me last week. And now, it feels so special. And it was the perfect thing for our tea at breakfast this morning.

*Sickness has been making the rounds at our house the past several weeks. But I think it's safe to say we are all finally healthy but for a few lingering sniffles. Phew. That was a long stretch.

* Mary and Birdy are like a little miniature "circle of life"....one is losing teeth as fast as the other is getting them in.

*I have been knitting like crazy from this . two elf hats down, two to go.

*I also have a project to block and ends to weave in for a shrug I made for birdy. My husband doesn't "get" the shrug...and I have to admit, while extremely cute, the jury is still out on its practicality for a baby. But his favorite thing to say to me is, "so that's half a sweater, that's half finished??" Yes. Yes it is.

*My favorite background to knitting has been online episodes of Parenthood. Am I the only person who finds this show oddly intriguing and mildly addicting?

*Yesterday was a sad day. I had to purchase my first box of store-bought eggs. The girls aren't laying enough now during the short winter days to keep us in eggs.

*A good post from gwen bell...what are we willing to put down in 2011 ? In the words of GK Chesterton (quoted in her article, and also a personal family favorite) "It is easy to be heavy, hard to be light."

*this picture and this one. loving.

*the night we put up the Christmas tree, I sat in a chair in the living room and watched my children--one on violin, one on a guitar with only two strings, one on a wooden recorder. And I was struck. By how much I loved that moment. But also by the fact that this is them, making their memories. That blows me away some times.

*the other night, as I was in bed with elizabeth, just before she fell asleep she asked me, "Is Christmas after bed time or is Christmas after college?"

If I am not back in this space before the holidays, here is my Christmas wish to all of you for a warm, healthy, full, and happy holiday.

xo.

molly

November 30, 2010

this is what you get

November 30, 2010/ molly balint

I intended this post to be something slightly more coherent, perhaps even in paragraph form, but alas, basically everyone in this house is sick, but me. I've been 24 hour on-call nurse and complete sentences and paragraphs aren't in my repertoire right now. (apparently, using the shift-key isn't in my repertoire, either.)

*hurry. over to this post on momformation. i'm giving away a great little compact photo printer from epson.

*i just finished reading this book by michael perry. i was (probably a little too) sad when it was over. you know how you mourn the end of a really good story? there was a bit of genius on every page. and of course, it was almost like reading a page from my own story. i think i may be so bold as to say this ranks in my top 3 reads of 2010.

*speaking of poultry, tonight we lost our rooster, captain. do they have strokes? he was suddenly stricken blind. running into things. then lethargic. he could have been old. he could have been sick. and we didn't want him to pass something on to the hens. so unfortunately, we (which means, dan) had to put him out of his misery.

*i've been knitting. that hat peeking out in my picture is kyrie's. it's a great pattern. and so versatile. i can wear it, and so can all the girls. and now several family members have requested it as christmas gifts.

*i purchased a set of these, since it appears that i'm going to be doing a lot of knitting-gifting. (be warned, there is a ticking "countdown to christmas" on this website. it may elevate your heartrate.)

*last night, i did something i never thought i'd do. i purchased ready-made photo christmas cards. but apparently, my drive to always "design them myself" has resulted in five years of no christmas card from our family.

*i made one holiday decor splurge yesterday. on an advent calendar. i know. i know. i could have made my own. but sometimes, you just need to let someone else do the work. luckily, i'm not ready for it to be december 1, so this will give me a few extra days to get organized. i loved our advent calendar when i was little. it was one of my favorite parts of the holiday. my kids need to get in on that action, too.

*tomorrow on momformation, i'm going to be sharing my kitchen christmas wish list. what's on yours? i'd love to know.

*and while we're talking...now that coop is over, any good book suggestions? let me have it.

alright. that's the news from here. where the rain is pouring down, the woodstove is cranking. and there is strange pig-like squealing-screeching-creep-me-out coming from the dark, back yard.

that would be my cue to go upstairs and hide under the covers with a feverish babe who is already passed out in my bed. someday my husband and i will sleep in the same bed again without a child between us, right? right.

November 24, 2010

thanks. giving

November 24, 2010/ molly balint

The girls bundled up early this morning and headed to the barn for a pre-Thanksgiving ride.

It is cool and sunny and breezy. I walked outside this morning and thought, "This feels like Thanksgiving."

I hung clothes on the clothesline (in my mittens).

Swept the leaves from the mudroom and front steps, again.

I cleaned up breakfast dishes and kept the washing machine humming all morning.

And just as the girls are returning from their ride, pink-cheeked and smelling like cold air, the baby is waking up.

It's off to the library for books for our holiday.

Then an afternoon of baking, cleaning, and napping.

Wishing you all a peaceful, sweet and full Thanksgiving. I am truly, truly thankful for all of you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

xo.

molly

February 15, 2010

sniff, sniff

February 15, 2010/ molly balint

A few weeks ago, two of my dear cousins came to town for a visit and stayed at my grandmother's house. On their last day, we sat together in my grandmother's bedroom on her boldly upholstered sofa, knitting, looking at old scrapbooks, reminiscing, and assessing the future.

One of my favorite things in my grandmother's bedroom, aside from that great sofa, are the throw pillows that cover it. I've said it before but one of the things I love about my grandmother's house is that her handiwork is everywhere. And those pillows are no exception. Some were gifts, some made by her children and many made by her.

To me, they are little gestures that carry so much love, care and effort.

And during the time we spent in her bedroom that Sunday afternoon, I determined that I would make each of the girls a pillow of their own for Valentine's Day this year.

When I was living on my grandmother's farm, she gifted me a small basket of her fabric scraps and many of those fabrics went into the girls' pillows. At the bottom of that basket, I also found a piece of the same fabric that upholsters her bedroom sofa--enough to back each of the girls pillows.

As I ironed and stitched the fabrics together and appliqued a special design on the front of each pillow, for each girl, I said to my husband, "This fabric smells like her still." It made me teary, but happy.

And when those three little girls opened their presents Valentine's morning and pulled out the pillows, they clutched them and buried their noses in them. "This smells like Meemu!" And they recognized that fabric and knew bits of it were from her.

It made all the effort and the sneaking-around sewing, and the borrowed sewing machine, and the stuck fingers, and the ripped out stitches and silly mistakes worth it.